I read an interesting article in the Morrison & Foerster blog the other day about a case where a class was de-certified because it appeared there was a problem with the lawyers for the class. As the blog post notes, defense counsel must always be looking for a way to terminate (i.e. dismiss) the case,
Rule 23
Third Circuit Rules on Two Class Actions in Same Decision and Opines on Doctrine of Pendant Jurisdiction
By Mark Tabakman on
In a very interesting and off-beat decision, the Third Circuit has thrown out one class of loan officers who alleged misclassification but let stand the lower court’s decision that certified the case as a collective action under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The case is entitled Reinig et al. v. RBS Citizens NA, and…
Collective Action On Automatic Lunch Deductions Settles: We’ve Seen This Before (Many Times)
By Mark Tabakman on
Many employers these days have timekeeping systems that deduct time (e.g. thirty minutes) for lunch on a daily basis. There is an inherent danger in doing this, as employees may claim that they worked through lunch and therefore should be paid. This is evidenced in yet another settlement in such an action, a settlement that…
Decertification of a Class and Rejection of Another Class in the Same Case: The Daily Double!
By Mark Tabakman on
This is an interesting case because it combines the elements of necessary, but not proven, commonality of situation for class certification and a quirky element of overtime calculation based on a unique FLSA provision. The bottom line is that the two workers who sought a class action on both the federal and state levels lost…